Clothes rack



1960 c. E. GINGHER ETAL 2,964,202

CLOTHES RACK Filed Aug. 4, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTORS CARL E. G/NGHER CARL E. GINGHER, JR.

BY 5235a ATTORNEYS 1960 c. E. GINGHER ETAL 2,964,202

CLOTHES RACK 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 4, 1958 ATTORNEYS Unite States Patent CLOTHES RACK Carl E. Gingher and Carl E. Gingher, Jr., Scranton, Pa.,

assignors to Gingher Manufacturing Company, Scranton, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Filed Aug. 4, 1958, Ser. No. 752,966

8 Claims. (Cl. 211-134) The present invention relates to clothes racks, more particularly to an upright clothes rack primarily for small offices and the like, which is extremely stable when carrying a full load of garments. Other features of this clothes rack includes a detachable shelf section and leveling arrangement which does not decrease the stability of the loaded clothes rack.

The need has always existed for an upright clothes rack for small offices and the like, which rack can accommodate a considerable amount of clothing, take up a minimum of space, and yet be stable when a load of clothing is suspended from the hanger bar thereof. In an effort to increase the capacity of a clothing rack, a hanger bar for the garments has been made of such a length that the rack is not stable when a number of garments are suspended therefrom. Consequently, a slight contact with the clothing rack is liable to upset the rack.

It is well known that the floors of various structures are not exactly level. This also contributes to the instability of upright clothes racks. When a clothes rack having a load of garments thereon is positioned upon a slightly inclined floor, the result is that a very slight contact can tip over the clothes rack.

It is therefore the principal object of this invention to provide a novel and improved clothes rack having both a shelf and a hanger bar for garments.

It is another object of this invention to provide an upright clothes rack which has considerable stability when carrying a load of garments on the hanger bar thereof.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a shelf section for a clothes rack which can be mounted on vertical members other than the upright of a clothes rack. It is an additional object of this invention to provide a shelf section having a novel and improved clamping arrangement for securing the shelf section to an up right.

It is still another object of this invention to provide an improvement in a leveling arrangement for an upright clothes rack wherein the stability of the rack is unaffected when leveling adjustments are made.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent upon reference to the accompanying description when taken in conjunction with the following drawings wherein:

Figure 1 is an over-all perspective view of the clothes rack of this invention looking at the under side of the shelf section and downwardly upon the base;

Figure 2 is a perspective view of the components comprising the base of the clothes rack of this invention showing the components in exploded relationship to each other;

Figure 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of the elongated member of the base showing the leveling arrangement for the clothes rack;

Figure 4 is a sectional view taken through the lower end of the vertical upright showing the fastening studs secured therein;

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Figure 5 is a perspective view of the shelf section of this invention looking at the rear thereof;

Figure 6 is a bottom plan view of a portion of the shelf section showing the clamp arrangement thereon; and

Figure 7 is a top plan view illustrating the relationship between the clothes suspended from the hanger bar and the triangle formed by the supporting pads on the base.

The clothes rack of this invention essentially comprises a base which has supporting surfaces thereon arranged in a triangle. A vertical upright is attached to said base, and mounted on the upper end of the upright is a detachable shelf section. A hanger bar on said shelf section is so arranged that it is positioned entirely within the triangle formed by the supporting surfaces on the base. In addition, the base is provided with a leveling arrangement which is so constructed that the size of the triangle is not diminished when leveling adjustments have been made.

This arrangement contributes to the stability of the clothes rack of this invention For a specific embodiment of the clothes rack of this invention, reference is made to Figure 1 of the drawings wherein a clothes rack indicated at lcomprises a base 2,-

a vertical upright 3, and a shelf section 4. Each of these main components will be described in detail. H Proceeding next to Figure 2, there is disclosed a base 2 which comprises an elongated base member 5 which is in the form of a channel having closed ends 6. There is a cut-out 7 in the center of one of the flanges of the base member. A pair of holes 8 are located in the central transverse axis of the web of the base member 5.

A cross-piece 9 is similarly formed from a channel and has a closed end 10. There are a pair of longitudinally arranged holes 11 at the end of the cross-piece opposite from the closed end 10. The cross-piece 9 has the same cross-section as the base member 5 and fits into the cutout portion 7 of the base member.

There is a resilient pad 12 at each of the ends of the base member 5 and at the end 10 of the cross-piece 9. These pads form supporting surfaces for the base and are made from natural or synthetic rubber or from, a suitable plastic. Each of the pads is attached to the base by a pad-holder 13 which, as can be seen in Figure 3, is channel-shaped, with a flange 14. The flange 14 is spotwelded to the under surface of the base. There is a tab 15 cut out from each side of the pad-holder channel. These tabs are slightly inclined inwardly and form clamping jaws to retain the resilient pad therebetween.

There is a hole 16 in each of said base members near the extreme ends thereof. Each hole has a reinforcing plate 17 and is tapped. An adjusting screw 18 having an enlarged head 19 to facilitate gripping thereof is threaded into each of the openings 16. The end of the screw engages the web of the pad-holder and positions the pad with respect to the base for leveling the clothes rack. As can be seen in Figure 3, when the adjusting screw is tightened, the outer edge of the supporting pad rests upon the surface.

The upright 3 comprises l /2-inch square steel tubing. The lower end of the upright indicated at 20 has a pair of threaded studs 21 welded to the inner faces thereof. These studs pass through the holes 8 and 11 of the base member and cross-piece respectively. The nuts are then threaded on the lower end of the studs to secure the upright and the base members together into an integral unit. The upright member can be made of any appropriate height, depending on the contemplated use for the clothes rack.

Proceeding next to Figure 5, there is illustrated the shelf section 4 which comprises a tubular section 22 which is of a short length when compared to the length of the vertical upright. The tubular section 22 has a square cross-section but is somewhat larger than the .Pafented Dec. 13, 1 960 3 cross-section of the vertical upright so as to form a telescoping fit therewith. The tubular section comprises a channel having inwardly bent flanges 23. The space between the edges of the flanges 23 forms a longitudinally extending slot 24.- There is a shelf 25 mounted on the top of the tubular section so as to close the upper end of the tubular section. Thus, when the shelf section is in position upon the upright, the shelf engages the top end ofthe vertical upright so as to limit the movement of the shelf section upon the upright.

The shelf comprises a pattern of openings 26 and has a downwardly depending flange 27 extending around the edges thereof. The flange may have trim thereon for decorative or identifying purposes.

7 There is a bracket 28 which serves as a brace between the shelf and the tubular member.

A bar 29 extends laterally outwardly from the front face of the tubular section 22. p The bar 29 is spaced below the shelf 25 and extends along the central transverse axis thereof. One end of the bar is secured to the tubular section, and the other end is bent upwardly and is fastened to the bracket as indicated at 30.

The capacity of the shelf section is increased by pro viding a stamped steel hook 31 on each side of the tubular section. I

Clamping means indicated generally at 32 are provided on the tubular section for securing the shelf section to the vertical upright. This clamping means comprises a strip 33 which bridges the longitudinal slot 24 and is secured to the flanges 23. A pair of slits are formed in the strip extending across the slot 24 so as to form three parallel strip portionsa central portion 34 and outer portions 35. The central portion is curved inwardly with respect to the tubular section and the two outer portions are curved outwardly. A block 36 is passed between the outwardly curved outer portions 35 and inwardly curved central portion 34. The block has a threaded hole 37 which receives an adjusting screw 38.

When the screw 38 is tightened, the end thereof will contact the central strip portion 34. Subsequent tightening of the screw will urge the central curved portion against the outer surface of the vertical upright. The ends of the block 36 at the same time will push outwardly against the outer strip portions 35. This action between the block 36 and the strip portions 34 and 35 will clamp the tubular section to the vertical upright. With this arrangement, the end of the adjusting screw does not contact the vertical upright and hence does not mar the finish thereof.

While the shelf section 4 has been described as being mounted upon the upper end of the upright in order to form the clothes rack, the shelf section may be used independently of the upright and base of the clothes rack of this invention. The shelf section can be mounted on any vertical upright of appropriate form. Such uprights may be found in partitions of ofiices or may be a part of the building structure. In any event, the shelf section can be used independently of the upright disclosed as this invention and can be clamped to any suitable upright.

Figure 7 illustrates diagrammatically the stability of the clothes rack of this invention. In this View, it is pointed out that the hanger bar is entirely within the triangle formed by the supporting pads on the base. As a result, the center of gravity of the loaded garment rack will fall within this triangular base. Consequently, even when a full load of garments are suspended from the hanger bar of this clothes rack, the clothes rack will be stable since the center of gravity of the garments will fall within this triangle.

Furthermore, when necessary adjustmentshave been *7 made to level the clothes rack, the center of gravity of the loaded clothes rack will still fall within this triangle. As pointed out previously, when a leveling adjustment has been made, the extreme outer edge of the pad will contact the supporting surface. Consequently, the triangle formed by the supporting pads will not be reduced in size but will be maintained at a maximum. Thus, leveling of the clothes rack will not decrease the stability thereof even when carrying a full load of garments.

If the entire supporting surface of the resilient pad contacted the surface upon which the garment rack rested, it can be seen that the triangle formed by these pads would be smaller and consequently the clothes rack would be less stable.

Thus it can be seen that the present invention has provided a simply constructed clothes rack which is stable with a full load of garments even when positioned upon inclined floor surfaces. The invention also discloses a shelf section which is compact in form, easily mounted and detached from the upright of this invention, and can be used independently from the clothing rack disclosed herein. The simple construction of this clothes rack which enables the rack to be easily assembled or disassembled results in a rack which is very convenient to use in small offices and other establishments having a small number of personnel therein.

It will be understood that this invention is susceptible to modification inorder to adapt it to different usages and conditions, and, accordingly, it is desired to comprehend such modifications within this invention as may fall within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a clothes rack, a base having an elongated member with a cross-piece extending laterally of said elongated member from the center thereof, a resilient pad on each of the extreme ends of said elongated member and the extreme end of said cross-piece so that said pads form triangularly arranged supporting surfaces, means on said base for adjusting downwardly the outer edges of each of said pads to level the clothes rack and to maintain the triangularly arranged supporting surfaces, a vertical upright upstanding from the center of said elongated member, and a shelf section detachably mounted on the upper end of said upright.

2. In a clothes rack, a base having an elongated memher with a cross-piece extending laterally of said elongated member from the center thereof, a resilient pad on each of the extreme ends of said elongated member and the extreme end of said cross-piece so that said pads form triangularly arranged supporting surfaces, each of said pads having a square supporting surface, means on said base for adjusting downwardly the outer edges of each of said pads to level the clothes rack and to maintain the triangularly arranged supporting surfaces, a vertical upright upstanding from the center of said elongated member, and a shelf section detachably mounted on the upper endof said upright.

3. In a clothes rack, a base having an elongated member with a cross-piece extending laterally of said elongated member from the center thereof, a strip of resilient material on the under surface of said elongated member and said cross-piece at the outer ends thereof, the inner ends of said strips being fastened to said elongated member and cross-piece, a pad of resilient material on the outer end of each of said strips to form a supporting surface for said base, adjusting means on said base to position said strips so that at least the outer edges of said pad support the rack, a vertical upright upstanding from the center of said elongated member, and a shelf section detachably mounted on the upper end of said upright.

4. In a clothes rack, a base having an elongated member with a cross-piece extending laterally of said elongated member from the center thereof, a strip of resilient material on the under surface of said elongated member and cross-piece at the outer ends thereof, the inner ends of said strips being fastened to said elongated member and cross-piece, a pad of resilient material on the outer end of each of said strips to form a support for said base, adjusting means on said base to position said strips so that at least the outer edges of said pads support the rack, a vertical upright upstanding from the center of said elongated member, a tubular section having a crosssection similar to that of said upright so that said tubular section is positionable over the upper end of said upright, means on said tubular section to engage the upper end of said upright to position the tubular section thereon, a shelf secured to said tubular section and extending laterally therefrom, and means on said shelf section for clamping said section to the upper end of said upright to restrain the shelf section against movement thereon.

5. In a clothes rack, a base, a vertical upright upstanding from said base, a tubular section positioned in telescoping arrangement over the upper end of said upright, a shelf secured to the top end of said tubular section to close ed the top end thereof and extending laterally outwardly of said tubular section, a bar extending laterally outwardly of said tubular section spaced below said shelf and along the central transverse axis of said shelf, the outer end of said bar being bent upwardly and secured to the under side of said shelf, and means on said shelf section for clamping said section to the upper end of said upright so as to restrain the shelf section against movement thereon.

6. In a clothes rack, a base having an elongated member with a cross-piece extending laterally of said elongated member from the center thereof, a resilient pad on the extreme ends of said elongated member and the extreme end of said cross-piece so that said pads form triangularly arranged supporting surfaces, a vertical upright upstanding from the center of said elongated member, a tubular section positioned in telescoping relationship over the upper end of said upright, a shelf secured to the top end of said tubular section to close off said top end and extending laterally outwardly from said tubular section, a bar extending laterally outwardly from said tubular section spaced below said shelf and along the central transverse axis of said shelf, the outer end of said bar being bent upwardly and fastened to the under side of said shelf, said bar forming a hanger bar for garments and being within the limits of said triangularly arranged supporting surfaces whereby said clothing rack is stable even when a number of garments are suspended from said hanger bar.

7. In a clothes rack, a base, a vertical upright upstanding from said base, a tubular section positioned in telescoping relationship over the upper end of said upright, a shelf secured to the top end of said tubular section to close off the top end thereof and extending laterally outwardly from said tubular section, a bar extending laterally outwardly from said tubular section spaced below said shelf and along the central transverse axis of said shelf, the outer end of said bar being bent upwardly and secured to the under side of said shelf, means on said shelf section for clamping said section to the upper end of said upright so as to restrain the shelf section against movement thereon, and a pair of clothing hooks on said tubular section with one hook being on each side of said hanger bar.

8. In a clothes rack, a base, a plurality of resilient pads on said base and mounted to form triangularly arranged supporting surfaces, means on said base for adjusting downwardly the outer edges of each of said pads to level the clothes rack and to maintain the triangularly arranged supporting surfaces, a vertical upright upstanding from said base, and a shelf section mounted on the upper end of said upright.

References Cited in the file of this patent 

